Health Administration Salaries in South Dakota

In March of 2015, the South Dakota Department of Labor and Regulation published data showing that the average hospital and medical office administrator salary in the state was $94,944. Entry-level salaries ranged between $60,649 and $72,931, while the median salary for healthcare administrators statewide was $90,539. The most experienced healthcare administrators earned salaries that ranged between $112,213 and $135,241 that year.

Factors Contributing to Job Growth for Healthcare Administrators in South Dakota

In January of 2011, the South Dakota Department of Labor published in its e-Labor Bulletin that the healthcare and social assistance sector would experience the largest growth among all occupational sectors in South Dakota between 2008 and 2018. Due to the growing elderly population and a greater emphasis being placed on outpatient care as opposed to inpatient care, much of this growth was expected to occur in nursing and residential care facilities.

A more recent report published in February of 2014 by Drexel University, Center for Labor Markets and Policy, revealed that ambulatory healthcare facilities were slated for the biggest employment growth between 2012 and 2022 at 39% compared to 23.8% growth in nursing and residential care facilities. Job growth in the field of healthcare administration correlates with overall job growth in the healthcare sector, as facility managers and system administrators are needed to manage staffing issues and operating costs.

Healthcare Administrator Salaries in South Dakota According to Location and Experience Level

One of the biggest factors to affect the income of healthcare administrators is location. In fact, there is nearly a 19% difference in average salary among healthcare administrators employed in central South Dakota as compared to those employed in the eastern region of the state.

Rapid City

Starting: $64,787 to $80,195

Median: $98,754

Average: $98,881

Experienced: $116,901 to $134,898

Sioux Falls

Starting: $61,228 to $78,066

Median: $100,868

Average: $104,170

Experienced: $122,460 to $152,168

Central Region

Starting: $53,945 to $60,931

Median: $71,040

Average: $72,656

Experienced: $80,817 to $97,870

Eastern Region

Starting: $61,665 to $71,082

Median: $84,453

Average: $89,330

Experienced: $103,801 to $123,944

A comparative analysis of health administration salaries across South Dakota is shown in the table here as published by the US Bureau of Labor Statistics in 2014: